NEWBERG, Ore. — Newberg Area Habitat for Humanity will host its second annual Building Hope gala Oct. 16 at the Chehalem Cultural Center, with a goal of raising more than $50,000 for Dundee Commons, a seven-home development in Dundee.
The inaugural gala raised more than $47,000 last year, according to Jacob Breazile, a board member and chair of the organization’s Resource Committee. Breazile said 125 tickets were purchased and 78 people attended, a difference he attributed to donors who bought tickets as a way to give.
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“Now that we have a frame of reference from last year’s fundraiser, we would love to raise over $50,000,” Breazile said.
Breazile described Dundee Commons as the largest project the organization has undertaken. It will bring seven affordable homes to Dundee along with an early learning program that includes free preschool and family services for qualifying families through Head Start, he said. The project is a partnership of Newberg Area Habitat for Humanity, Head Start of Yamhill County, and Newberg First United Methodist Church, according to a project flyer.
Executive Director Shannon Selah said the multi-use project, which is in predevelopment, has grown from four planned homes to seven.
The flyer, dated October 2024, places the development at the corner of Highway 99W and 11th Street, between the church’s historic sanctuary and the former Barn Door Brewery. It described a three-story building with about 2,700 square feet of Head Start classrooms on the first floor and homes on the upper floors, replacing an existing parsonage and education building the flyer described as unused.
The flyer listed four three-bedroom, two-bathroom homes and said the designs, by Scott Edwards Architecture, were subject to change. It said the sanctuary and fellowship hall would remain a place of worship.
“To put it plainly, this project is far from cheap,” Breazile said.
He said the organization hopes donors and local businesses that stand to benefit from the project will contribute or match donations.
The evening will include a raffle, live music, and a live auction, according to the event listing. Admission includes appetizers, dinner, and local wines. Breazile said guests can view blueprints and interactive 3D models of upcoming projects and hear from homeowners about how donations have affected them. He said organizers plan to add card readers, begin check-in before doors open, and make seating available earlier in the evening.
Beyond Dundee Commons, Selah said the organization is building and repairing homes at a faster pace than in the past. She said three homes on College Street were sold between December 2025 and March 2026, two homes are under construction at 1201 E. Fifth St. in Newberg with completion expected in January or February 2027, and four more homes are in predevelopment on College Street behind the earlier build site.
Every home is sold to a family that might otherwise not be able to own one, Selah said.
The organization also completed 12 repairs in the last year, including 10 major projects such as siding, roofing, decks, and HVAC work, Selah said. She said grant funding has broadened the scope of the repair programs, which focus on keeping residents in their homes. According to the organization’s website, Newberg Area Habitat for Humanity has built 33 homes and completed 119 repairs since its founding. Selah also said sales at the Newberg Area Habitat for Humanity’s ReStore have set records year over year, a trend she credited to Jerome Spencer’s management of the store and the addition of Wednesday hours.
People who cannot attend the gala can donate at newberghabitat.org/donate or donate items to the ReStore, Selah said. Volunteer options include helping at fundraisers and tabling events, working shifts at the build site or ReStore — no experience required — joining a committee, or researching properties for acquisition.
Tickets for the gala are $75 each and are available through the organization’s online event page. The event is on Oct. 16 at 5:30 p.m. at the Chehalem Cultural Center in Newberg.
Learn more and purchase tickets at the event’s webpage.
